Sergio Saldivar, an El Paso lawyer who is running for county attorney, was accused of stalking and family violence and agreed to a 2019 protective order that prohibited him from contacting his accuser or her family, court records show.
Seeking protective orders for family violence victims is one of the key functions of the County Attorney’s Office.
Saldivar, 56, was accused by a woman he used to live with of stalking and family violence. She was represented by the County Attorney’s Office in efforts to get a protective order against Saldivar. El Paso Matters is not naming the woman to protect her privacy.
The woman, then 32, filed her first request for a protective order in August 2018 but withdrew it a few weeks later. She sought another protective order in June 2019. She and Saldivar agreed to a protective order in August 2019, which was signed by judicial officer Dick Alcala.
The protective order – which El Paso Matters discovered in a check of court records for candidates in upcoming elections – prohibited Saldivar from communicating with the woman or her family, going within 200 yards of her home or workplace, or possessing a firearm or concealed carry permit.
Because Saldivar agreed to the protective order before an evidentiary hearing was conducted, there was no court finding of wrongdoing by him. He agreed to abide by the order, which expired after two years. He was not accused of violating the terms of the protective order, and no criminal charges were made.
In an interview with El Paso Matters, Saldivar denied stalking or abusing the woman.
“I wasn’t stalking her, and there was no family violence. I agreed to stay away from her because I think that was a better life choice for me,” Saldivar said.
The court filings seeking the protective orders don’t provide details of the alleged stalking or violence, and lists their relationship as “former members of households.” Saldivar declined to discuss the nature of the allegations, other than to say the woman had “motive” to make the claims about him.
Saldivar is seeking the Democratic nomination for county attorney in the March 5 primary. The only other candidate is Assistant County Attorney Christina Sanchez.
“Mr. Saldivar agreed to a protective order in 2019,” Sanchez said in a statement to El Paso Matters. “I do not have any other details or information since I was not involved in the matter, but per the public document, he was accused of stalking and domestic violence. He needs to be able to explain to the public, given these allegations, how he can be trusted to protect the victims of domestic violence in our community.”
There is no Republican candidate, so the winner of the Democratic primary will succeed County Attorney Jo Anne Bernal, who decided not to seek re-election after 15 years in office.
The job currently pays $226,534 a year.
During the campaign, Saldivar has said the County Attorney’s Office needs to do a better job of vetting the motives of people seeking protective orders.
“All too often, there is an ulterior motive in seeking a protective order. This is a waste of county resources and can negatively impact people’s livelihoods and reputations without consequence to the actors,” he said in response to a questionnaire for El Paso Matters’ voters guide for the March primary election.
In an interview with El Paso Matters on Thursday, he again raised the issue of the motives of people seeking protective orders
“I’ve dealt with defending those types of (protective order) cases, where there’s always a motive behind it. There’s either a divorce at the same time, there’s a custody battle going on at the same time within the family court. I don’t think the county attorney considers that because I think too many people can be victimized by those types of accusations,” he said.
He did not mention his personal experience with a protective order until it was raised by El Paso Matters.
The County Attorney’s Office has a unit dedicated to helping obtain protective orders for people who say they have faced abuse, stalking or other forms of violence by people in their lives. The County Attorney’s Office submits motions for protective orders to courts, and judges then decide whether there is enough evidence to grant them.
Protective orders generally prohibit people from having contact with those they are accused of attacking or targeting.
When asked why domestic violence victims should feel comfortable seeking protective orders if he was elected county attorney, Saldivar said he will follow the law.
“I’m going to interview them for victimization and truthfulness. And if it’s there, it’s there,” he said. “We’re going to fight for the protective orders, we’re going to get protective orders granted to them. I’m not going to take my personal experience and make decisions for the El Paso community based on what has happened to me.”
Sanchez said working with victims of domestic violence is a large part of the work of the County Attorney’s Office.
“The County Attorney’s Office has a legacy of working toward ending the cycle of domestic violence and the use of a protective order is one of those tools. The public needs to have the confidence in the next county attorney that they will handle these matters fairly regardless of socioeconomic status, immigration status, gender or age,” she said.
Saldivar is supported by Sheriff Richard Wiles, who is serving as his campaign treasurer, and has been endorsed by the El Paso County Sheriff’s Officers Association.
The post Abuse allegations led to protective order against county attorney candidate appeared first on El Paso Matters.
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